Waitsburg Mayor Resigns Following Nestlé Backlash

WAITSBURG – Walt Gobel officially tendered his letter of resignation as mayor of Waitsburg on Tuesday afternoon. Gobel, who was easily re-elected to his sixth term in April, said he was stepping down because he felt his reputation has been irreparably damaged over his role in negations with Nestlé Waters North America.

"When our voters and taxpayers put me in office it was an indication that they respected and trusted me to make decisions for the good of the community. I honestly feel that my respect and trust by the community has been severely damaged by this situation." Gobel said. "I must also say that my respect and trust with two of our city council members has also been damaged," he added.

Gobel's statement is in response to Waitsburg residents who are vehemently opposed to Nestlé' evaluating Waitsburg as a potential site for a water bottling facility. Many citizens have been vocal in pushing for Gobel's recall as mayor because they feel he overstepped his authority as mayor by allowing Nestlé into the city's watershed to do exploratory work without the knowledge or consent of the city council.

In an interview with The Times, Gobel said he and city manager Randy Hinchliffe first had contact with Nestlé when they were invited to attend a meeting at the Port of Walla Walla with Nestlé representatives. He said Nestlé indicated they might be interested in building a water bottling plant in Waitsburg, depending on the quality and quantity of water available.

"At that time, Randy and I advised that no matter the outcome of the offer, we wanted nothing that could possibly divide our community. The representatives asked for confidentiality of this proposal until they could determine the feasibility of the project. We agreed to that request, knowing that it was a common practice, based on the magnitude of the proposal," Gobel said.

"Even the July 26 editorial in the Union Bulletin, acknowledged that it's a common request to keep things like this quiet," he added.

Approximately one month later, Gobel said he, Hinchliffe, and city attorney Jared Hawkins, participated in a conference call with Nestlé to discuss the proposed scope of work and a request for continued confidentiality.

"During that meeting we refused a continuance of confidentiality because of our concern about the appearance of secrecy," Gobel said. "We also agreed to make it a point of discussion at our next council meeting, which we did during an executive session in June's meeting. It then became a discussion item for the July meeting."

Gobel said that the city's access to the watershed springs has been severely restricted because of heavy brush, blackberry vines, downed timber, and eroded mountainside roads. He said that, between the June and July council meetings, Nestlé offered to clear the brush and downed trees and rebuild the mountain roads to aid in accessing the springs.

The work would be done at no cost to the city which would have had to hire a contractor to do the work. Gobel said he, Hinchliffe and Waitsburg public works director Jim Lynch were present on the work site to make sure the work was being completed as agreed.

"The Nestlé representatives and subcontractor had no access to the springs themselves. During the work, two leaks were discovered and one was a major leak. Nestlé indicated they would assist with the repairs since the necessary equipment was already in place," Gobel said.

"At the July 20 council meeting, councilman KC Kuykendall immediately and indignantly moved that this work cease and desist. After that motion passed, he then made a motion for the city to allow up to $5,000 for the leak repair. I question if this was a wise use of our taxpayers dollars when it could have been done for free," Gobel said.

Hinchliffe said the leak repair cost the city approximately $2,000 but that there is another leak under the road that still needs to be taken care of.

The referenced objection occurred when council members expressed surprise at being unaware that Nestlé had been allowed to subcontract work in the watershed without their knowledge and with no contract with Nestlé.

"I really regret that we are here in front of all of our voting constituents without having had the opportunity to engage in a conversation about due diligence and to review whatever contracts – apparently we have none – with Nestlé'?" Kuykendall said at the July meeting. "I would never approve a company going up and doing significant work in our primary water source without a mitigation and risk management plan," he added.

Gobel said he and Hinchliffe were not given an opportunity to explain the how or why of the events that lead to Nestlé being allowed to subcontract work in the watershed during the July meeting.

"Councilman Kuykendall and most of the public present at the meeting were quick to jump to their own conclusions without knowing the actual facts," he said.

Gobel said he and Hinchliffe always work to keep an open mind, listen to others, and work toward what is best for the community.

"In our positions we have a duty to be open minded, unbiased, and to make decisions based on common sense and actual fact. These decisions must be based on what may be good for Waitsburg. I believe that the city council has that same obligation. We cannot and should not allow personal bias, feelings, hearsay, or social media to play a part in those decisions," Gobel said.

"I do believe we have the obligation to our community to research and listen to any possibility of community and economic development. Again, decisions must be based on true facts, not innuendo or what may be posted on Facebook. To date, that has not been the case in this situation, at least not with two of our council members," he added.

"To those who have pushed for my recall, I say 'you won'! You have won the battle, but if you continue to reject all possibilities of growth for this community, you will not win the war. Our community will continue to regress as long as you maintain your 'mob' attitude when possible community development presents itself. After all, this is not the first time this has happened. I am embarrassed that our community has treated some of the presenters on possible community or economic development very rudely," he added.

Gobel mentioned Eric Hockersmith's recent Letter to the Editor in The Walla Walla Union Bulletin which accused Gobel and Hinchliffe of violating the public's trust and circumventing the democratic process with reckless behavior that put the city at risk with regard to liability and litigation.

In the letter Hockersmith requested that Hinchliffe and Gobel "do the right thing, learn from their mistakes, and formally apologize for their indiscretion to the Waitsburg City Council, city residents and surrounding community."

"Apologize for what? Trying to improve economic development in our community? I think not! You see, I was only trying to do the job that I was elected to do," Gobel said.

Gobel said he is at peace with his decision to resign and is looking forward to less stress and spending more time with his wife, Gwen, in their RV, at their cabin, or on the road. He will also remain active in the community as president of the Waitsburg Lions Club, president of the Walla Walla Columbia School Retirees Association, and through his involvement with the Celebration Days Committee.

Gobel expressed appreciation for council members Marty Dunn, Kevin House, and Karl Newell, "started this adventure with me" as well as his community supporters. He praised Hinchliffe as an "invaluable resource" who has obtained millions of dollars in state and federal grants for the betterment of the community and said the city crew is the best in recent history.

"I leave office with my head held high knowing my intentions have always been for the benefit of the community," he said.

On Tuesday afternoon, Hinchliffe said he didn't recall a mayor resigning in the past but it could be handled one of two ways.

Standard procedure is for the council to accept applications for the position, interview, and take a roll call vote.

Optionally, the council could vote to suspend the rules and allow Mayor Pro-Tem Marty Dunn to fulfill Gobel's term.

In that case, the council would accept applications to replace Dunn as a council member.